All existing grazing permit arrangements on these Merriwa-Cassilis TSRs expire on the last day of December.

The Travelling Stock Reserve network in NSW is an extensive network of public land that was established for the droving of sheep and cattle during drought times.

Hunter LLS called for Expressions of Interest for 1554 hectares in Merriwa-Cassilis last month, advising persons interested in the 23 nominated reserves a bidding process would take place.

Jane Edwards, Manager of Biosecurity and Emergency Services at Hunter LLS, said an unspecified number of farmers utilising TSRs adjacent to their properties in the Merriwa-Cassilis areas have missed out.

“Unfortunately, some incumbent landholders using the reserves have not been successful because of the very competitive nature of the process, but we are offering them as much assistance as we can,” Ms Edwards said.

Allocation of the reserves was made after each application was considered by an Evaluation Team comprising one TSR business manager within Hunter Local Land Services, the District Co-ordinator for the Upper Hunter and a Subject Matter Expert from another Local Land Services region.

Jane Edwards confirmed the majority of the successful applicants had come from within the Merriwa-Cassilis district and none of the applicants are from the coal mining or coal seam gas industries.

Under the new permits, successful candidates will be able to graze livestock from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2018.

Ms Edwards said the TSRs varied in size.

“The largest reserve is the Kellick Reserve on the Golden Highway at Merriwa, which is 380 hectares.

“But three of the 23 Travelling Stock Reserves were small and attracted no interest.  These included a four-hectare block, a nine hectare reserve and one that was 22 hectares,” Ms Edwards said.

The Board of Local Land Services is looking at management of the reserves in a commercial sense to achieve a return on investment, with 40 terms and conditions attached to the four-year grazing permits.

“We want to ensure there is weed management, that ground cover is maintained, and that there is general maintenance of stock-proof fences,” Ms Edwards said.

Hunter LLS claims it’s also planning to improve the condition of some TSRs in the Merriwa-Cassilis area.

“We have committed for the 2014/15 financial year $70,000 in capital infrastructure into areas that have not seen a lot of attention in the past.

“There’ll be up to 7km of fencing done on the 220-hectare Bow Reserve on the Golden Highway, there’ll also be a broader capital works program of fencing elsewhere, some dam excavation works and an additional $30,000 for smaller ongoing works,” Jane Edwards said.

Most applicants seeking a four-year TSR grazing permit in the Merriwa-Cassilis EOI round were contacted last week.

Hunter Local Land Services declined to disclose the total amount it received for the four-year grazing permits covering the 23 Travelling Stock Reserves in the Merriwa-Cassilis region.